TOM HALL-JONES

Engineering Serendipity:
Optimizing Creativity for Audience Impact

From precision timing to emotional manipulation, creators are locked in an arms race to engineer content perfectly in sync with the collective pulse of digital audiences.

Capture Attention, Create Value and make an impact comes down to one thing!

When I reflect over the years in what I have built through my online businesses, it really all just comes down to creativity and I guess that is really what my passion is.

I set up my first online business 16 years ago selling physical products online and was regulary earning over $5000 per month…oh and whilst I still had a full time job!

You may be asking how I did that…well it wasn’t easy and took commitemnt. I had to source products from abroad, be my own quality assurance guy, learn web design, get to grips with Google Ads and master SEO. It all paid off in the end though.

I have worked for companies from then until about 6 years ago but the hoops I had to jump through to get anything done with thos e companies was beyond a joke!

So, what did I do? Well I set up my own Web Design and SEO agency which has been succesful ever since and have been pushing my boundaries to test and learn what does and doesn’t work.

Whilst all this is great, I recently discovered that actually all of this creativity boils down to writing and organising information! Crazy as this may sound, but writing is the centre of the creativity to build your online presence…whether it is landing pages, newsletters, emails, video scripts, product material…you need to use the creative mind to build your content.

"If you are a Digital Creator, Influencer, Business owner or work for a business and need help with builing your digital audience...it would be great to hear from you".

Audience Builder

Becoming an effective audience builder requires cultivating expertise across multiple disciplines. It's not as simple as studying "audience building" in isolation or looking up generic advice on "hot skills for 2023." Taking this route leads to commoditization and replaceability.

The most impactful audience builders have a diverse stack of capabilities that they integrate into a cohesive skillset:

Visual communication through graphic design principles and tools. This enables creation of aesthetically appealing and effective visual content.
Engaging long-form content writing skills. This allows conveying in-depth information in a compelling, readable manner.
Persuasive copywriting techniques for short-form content. This drives action by motivating and activating readers.
Strategic marketing and sales knowledge. This provides insight into attracting and converting an audience.
Understanding human behavior and psychology. This fosters resonance with the target audience’s needs, desires, and emotions.
Self-awareness and refinement of one’s own message. This develops an authentic personal brand and voice.
Relationship-building and networking skills. This allows forming connections and partnerships.

Audience building is a lifestyle integrating these capabilities holistically, not a narrow focus. It involves artfully capturing attention, curating valuable information, making meaningful connections with others, creating resonant content, and distributing it in a way that inspires positive change.

The most talented audience builders continually expand their expertise across these disciplines. They realize the importance of a multifaceted skillset versus a singular focus. It’s this broad competency that allows them to provide unique value.

Awareness

In today's digital world, simply having a website is no longer enough to grow an online business. The internet is saturated with millions of sites all vying for attention. In order to thrive in this competitive landscape, companies must focus on actively building awareness and becoming visible to their target audience.

Building awareness and visibility is crucial for any business looking to succeed online. This includes making potential customers aware of your brand, products/services, and value proposition.
There are many ways to build awareness online – SEO, social media marketing, content marketing, influencer marketing, paid ads, email marketing, PR etc. A multi-channel awareness strategy is key.
Focus on creating shareable and engaging content that educates and entertains your target audience. This content should highlight your key differentiators.
Leverage influencers and brand advocates who can organically spread the word about your business to their networks. Make it easy for happy customers to review your business.
Paid advertising, retargeting and remarketing can help expand your reach to new potential customers. Geo-targeting ads is an effective way to increase localized awareness.
PR outreach to relevant media publications and blogs can help gain authoritative endorsements and backlinks, boosting awareness.
Monitor brand mentions and listen to online conversations to gain insights into consumer perception and better understand how awareness is developing.
Conversion metrics should be tracked to determine how increased awareness translates into sales. This data can be used to refine awareness strategies further.
Persistence and consistency over an extended period is key when implementing an awareness strategy. It takes time to see results, so stay focused.
Creativity, brand storytelling and unconventional marketing can capture attention and break through the noise.

Crafting an effective awareness strategy across multiple online channels is now a fundamental component of success for any business with an online presence. Just as a physical store relies on prominent signage and visual merchandising to attract shoppers, an e-commerce store or service needs online visibility to drive traffic.

It takes creativity, persistence and a data-driven approach to break through the digital noise. By implementing a well-planned, multi-channel awareness strategy, companies and individuals can build a memorable brand identity and customer base that sustains long-term growth.

Education

Companies must establish credibility and trust with their target audience by positioning themselves as trusted advisors and educators from the outset.

Providing educational content to nurture prospects throughout their buyer's journey has become a must for any brand's online strategy today. Whether it's addressing common pain points through informative blogs, clearly explaining products benefits, or teaching customers best practices via online courses - education plays a vital role.

Education builds trust and credibility. Providing useful information and teaching people demonstrates your expertise and establishes you as a thought leader.
Content marketing, such as blogs, videos, infographics etc. that educates your target audience can attract and retain customers. Focus on addressing pain points and solving problems.
Product descriptions, user guides and FAQs that clearly explain your offerings, features and benefits can drive conversions and sales. Use simple, non-technical language.
Webinars, online courses and tutorials allow you to train customers on getting the most value from your products/services. This drives loyalty and retention.
Case studies and customer success stories that highlight how real users benefited from your business can offer social proof.
Tools like calculators and templates that help customers apply learnings can be offered to add value. Ebooks and whitepapers work too.
Curated lists of resources, links to useful third party educational content can establish your business as a hub of learning for your industry.
Repurpose educational content into multiple formats like video, audio, slides, images to maximize reach and retention.
Interactive elements like assessments, quizzes, surveys keep visitors engaged while learning. Gamification works well.
Stay abreast of trends and update educational content regularly to maintain relevance. Segment content for different learner levels.

With in-depth research revealing over 70% of customers now expect to self-educate through online content before engaging with a business or individual, education has become a prerequisite for companies to demonstrate credibility. Implementing an education-focused content strategy can establish your brand as an authoritative industry resource.

User Experience

In today's digital landscape, delivering exceptional user experience (UX) is imperative for online businesses wanting to thrive. The days of static, one-way websites are long gone. Users expect immersive, intuitive digital environments with seamless functionality. Customer experience is now a key brand differentiator, and user-centric design is central to setting businesses apart. By focusing on ease-of-use, visual appeal, convenience and engagement across platforms, companies can drive conversions, foster loyalty and gain competitive advantage.

User experience (UX) refers to how easy and satisfying it is for customers to interact with a company’s products, services, and brand. It goes beyond just the design of a website or app and encompasses the entire customer journey.
UX is critical for online businesses because it can directly impact conversion rates, customer satisfaction, brand perception, and revenue. Poor UX often leads to high bounce rates, shopping cart abandonment, negative reviews, and loss of customers.
Some key elements of good UX include:
- Intuitive, easy-to-use navigation and interfaces. Customers should be able to find what they need quickly without confusion.
- Seamless flows between pages and actions. Minimal steps should be required to complete tasks.
- Fast load times and performance. Site speed greatly impacts engagement and conversion.
- Responsiveness across devices. Mobile optimization is a must as more traffic is via smartphones.
- Visual appeal through effective layouts, typography, images etc. Aesthetics promote positive first impressions.
- Clear communication of value propositions. Helping users understand benefits drives conversions.
UX design is an iterative process of testing and refinement based on user feedback and behavior data. A/B testing variations and addressing pain points should be done continually.
UX goes beyond the digital experience and also encompasses branding, advertising, customer service, packaging, and more. Every touchpoint impacts perception.
Investing in UX should be a priority as it generates tangible returns when done right, from increased sales to lowered acquisition costs. The user experience is critical for success online.

Customers are won and lost based on their digital journey, so getting UX right should be a strategic priority for any modern business.

Information Architect

Some of you are probably aksing "what is an information architect?". Information architecture (IA) refers to the structural design and organization of content and functionality on websites, apps, and other digital platforms. The goal is simple....help users find information quickly and effeciently and ensure all relevant content can be found.

On social media, IA involves crafting content and structuring profiles/pages so information is easy to find, consume and share. This includes using appropriate headlines, hashtags, image alt text, etc.
Writing for social media requires structured short-form content. Key messaging should be prioritized over details and front-loaded in sentences.
Visual IA on social media is important – using white space, lists, visual hierarchy, infographics, signifiers like icons and buttons to organize complex info.
IA for long-form writing involves structuring articles and reports using headers, table of contents, appropriate paragraphing, and visual elements to chunk content.
Writers need to architect information in a logical flow using narrative techniques to guide readers smoothly through detailed or complex topics.
On websites/blogs, writers should optimize article structure for SEO through keyword placement, meta descriptions, hyperlinks, related content sections.
IA helps social media managers and writers shape content for findability, scanability and shareability. It enhances user experience and information retrieval.
Adhering to platform IA conventions also matters – e.g. using threads on Twitter, relevant tagging on Instagram, concise captions on LinkedIn.

I enjoy complex scenarios and enjoy organizing complex information and formatting that information in a clear and logical way. As consumers, we are accustomed to finding exactly what we need, fast and easily….if we don’t find what we need we normally give up within a few seconds and move on.

Applying information architecture principles enables writers and social media managers to deliver content that is clear, accessible and well-organized for their audiences. IA is key for discovery and amplification.

Hi, I'm Tom

I am a Internet Digital Advisor for businesses of all sizes, influencers and social media companies.

Lets cut to the chase, when you look around the internet for “Digital Marketing” methods for growing your business, it is incredibly overwhelming and in most cases you are not sure which way to look and whether what you read online works.

My goal is to guide you through this process and show you ways of increasing your businesses online presence through proven tried and tested methods.

Basically, I am the person people come to when they need help to navigate the online world, particulary with their website, vision and general online presence.

At any one time I only take on a small number of clients to ensure they are given my full attention. No matter what type of business you are running I can assist you.

Engineering Serendipity:Optimizing Creativity for Audience Impact